In Which I Was Unintentionally Shelfie-Ready

I got inspired as most things happen these days, in the bathroom sitting down and staring at my shelves aimlessly. As I noticed that I have a tendency to line up my skincare there fairly neatly (one of the only times I'm that organized with my home), I thought it would make more a neat Instagram photo. Then I thought, "well, I need more blog content so why don't I do a sporadic bathroom shelfie series?"

And here we are, where my bathroom shelves mostly hold skincare and I can almost feel Caroline Hirons wince a bit that I keep more than cleansers in my bathroom. Sorry, Caroline! It's a simple Ikea shelf stores all the bits and bobs that were crowding upon the counter previously and deterring me from being a proper adult and cleaning my bathroom counter. Totally the reason and absolutely nothing to do with lack of motivation. ;)

As noticeable, I have amassed quite a bit of skincare from Deciem's The Ordinary. I've done an initial review of some of the products in the range, and I find that it's pretty great for the price point. Since I'm creeping into my mid-thirties, it's a great time to invest in more into a skincare routine and continue my vampiric lifestyle of avoiding direct sunlight. Or slathering on SPF when I must be in sunlight which is unavoidable when one lives in California.

For the most part, my daily routine is actually really simple right now: AM cleanse, serum, moisturizer, makeup. PM is a little more involved: first cleanse, second cleanse, acid tone, treatment, facial oil, cream or Egyptian Magic (not pictured). My treatments are usually either the Ordinary 2% Retinoid or The Ordinary Vitamin C 30% in Silicone Suspension. One night a week I'll do the AHA and BHA Peeling solution and if my skin is feeling particularly clogged I'll alternate nights of Retinoid solution and their Lactic Acid 5%. Right now my skin is having a bit of a dehydration freak out, so I pared back a lot to mainly the hydrating stuff. That being said, all these products here are brilliant.

In the back of this shelf you can see the bottle of My Amazing Blowdry Secret peeping out, which is (no pun intended) my secret weapon for blowdrying my hair quickly and heat protecting it. I also have the Redken Pillow Proof version there because I had accidentally left Blowdry Secret back east one Christmas and collected it back on the next visit. Both get the job done, but I do prefer My Amazing Blowdry Secret just a smidge more.

And here we have my main body care stuff plus bonus Nip + Fab pads which really are for my face, but lately I've been trying them out on the keratosis on my upper arms. Not sure it works but eh, always worth a shot! That infamous Bum Bum cream is a purchase I made, ridiculously enough, not even for it's supposedly butt-fancying properties but because I really love the smell. In retrospect considering the cost, that's a bit silly and thus I probably wouldn't buy again. Although, it turns out the cream has microglitter in it so it does give kind of a nice subtle shimmer onto my skin. But between that, the Burts Bee Milk & Honey lotion and the Nuxe Huile Prodigiuese oil, I'd go with Nuxe above all. I love this stuff, but alas, Nuxe pulled out of the US market and I must rely on the internet or trips abroad to stock up. The most interesting thing here (to me, anyway) and a discovery I've loved this year are the Meow Meow Tweet Deodorant Sticks. They're aluminum-free and low in baking soda, which for one reason or another I decided to switch to and gave up buying Old Spice. I actually really like both the scents smell and they work pretty good for me and definitely feel less harsh. Also, I like supporting indie brands when I can. They also do some lovely skincare products as well.

And finally, Muji bobby pins. Because bobby pins are one of the best secret weapons a girl can.

What sort of stuff would you like to see talked about when it comes to Shelfies? Let me know in the comments. :)